for a display in the 9/11 memorial museum which has just opened on the site of ground zero.
It states:
'You felt compelled to watch out of respect to them. They were ending their life without a choice and to turn away from them would have been wrong"Powerful words indeed.....
It's a shame that the museum also sells gifts such as the 9/11 cheese board
the mind boggles a cheese board why?? i can not even think of that time without thinking of the lives cut short and why ???? this lady must live her life with the memory what a brave lady
ReplyDelete????????????
ReplyDeleteI have read something about a gift shop. Why ?
ReplyDeleteNo need at all.
cheers, parsnip
i am horrified to learn of this gift shop? who made this decision? it is awful! and a cheese tray? what?
ReplyDeletegah, we are a disgusting country; I agree with spinners end farm. and the "cheese board" is probably made in china. is there no end to our stupidity?
ReplyDeleteSo agree. We are becoming such a lost nation.
DeleteIt looks like that item was taken off the on-line store.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the stuffed rescue puppy?
DeleteLooks like that is still there - ugh.
ReplyDeleteHow awful John. I was there not long after the event and stood in silence with the farmer and just looked at the horrifying place. Now to be cashing in on it all beggars belief.
ReplyDeleteIt was probably done because some twerp genuinely thought people would want a memento, a souvenir that would represent their feelings of respect for the victims and casualites.
ReplyDeleteA bit like a Diana funeral cup and saucer.
It's not just the Americans that are bonkers.
The families are infuriated by this gift store...as they should be. As we all should be. So sad.
ReplyDeleteI can't see what link a cheese board has ???
ReplyDeleteYes,, it does seem a bit arbitrary
DeleteOfficial comment about the souvenir shop is that it hasn't been designated a National Park/monument site yet and bills need to be paid. They also had a private wine and cheese party there, feet away from the remains of the unknown, as part of the pre-showing to financial supporters. Bad decisions made by supposedly good people.
ReplyDeleteA good point
DeleteBut you would have thought that someone would have piped up " it's not the best idea"
Probably did and were ignored. Happens a lot now days.
DeleteAs long as you're not being 'politically incorrect' about living people..
We are the land of the offended any more.
OMG! That is soooo tacky. Alongside the memories and those powerful words, it's just so out of place.
ReplyDeleteThere's been a lot of controversy about the museum and gift shop in NYC. Some think they're tasteless and disrespectful, others stoutly defend them. As Shadypine says, the museum cost a lot and the gift shop and $24 entrance fee are intended to help with the outlay. BUT if you look up the massive salaries of the people running the museum, I guess that's where a lot of the income is going....
ReplyDeleteJenny and I visited the original exhibition in 2008 and thought it was very respectful and sensitive.
Interesting perspective nick
DeleteI can't help thinking a donation box may be better
People used to sell 9/11 cookies to tourists from what I understand, but now....
ReplyDeleteAs someone who watched it all happen in real time while standing at office windows in NJ, I doubt I will ever go here. I do get that people from far and wide feel the need to connect to the tragedy, I just don't see the need to buy and sell unrelated crap and have a restaurant. This is not in anyway to be treated as if it was the MOMA.
When I went to DC and visited the various War Memorials, I certainly did not expect to be served a meal or buy a tchotchke. The Holocaust Museum has a gift shop, but they are also not sighted where the atrocities happened. Also, the gift shop had quite an extensive array of teaching materials. That is one museum that should have a bar because you need a stiff drink after going through it.
I wish they could have just built a quiet space, like a park where the Twin Towers once stood, but it was fought over for so damn long. There has to be a better way to offset costs.
Well put and explained..... I think you have hit the nail on the head... The museum is not just a museum in the traditional sense , it feels like a shrine...... Or at least almost a graveyard....
DeleteThat's why a shop does not quite feel right there
Amen.
DeleteI was thinking about the Holocaust Museum gift shop too.
DeleteStill deeply insensitive.
Jane x
I'm very sad to learn that a gift shop has been included.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Aaargh. And eeeeuw.
ReplyDeleteYep, God Bless America. I'm ashamed to say we would sell tickets to Armageddon and the back stage passes to the Second Coming. My country has little dignity when a buck can be made. But please keep in mind, most of us are not like that and have more respect for such events. Gift shops? I don't think so.
ReplyDeleteOn reflection I think it was a foolish mistake to sell merchandise..... But looking at the museum in its entirety.. The place looks very sensitively done...
DeleteWe are over due a visit to New York... When we go next, we will visit the museum
That made me laugh. I think we are allowed to now, aren't we?
ReplyDeleteI am not sure tom. To me it feels too soon to laugh ... And I think the memorial site is an important reason not to have a shop there. .... I visited theresienstadt once
DeleteI don't remember a gift shop there
It's only as bad as the people who go there and after absorbing all the complex feelings and emotions of the place and day, go buy a cheeseboard and actually use it to serve cheese to their guests.
ReplyDeleteYes chania... I couldn't quite understand " why" people would buy this item.....
DeleteWe went a few years ago and it had a shop which was more of a small museum telling the stories of both those that lost lives and the survivors. It reduced both me and my daughter to tears.
ReplyDeleteHope you and Chris have a good week, John. ♥
ReplyDeleteMe too linda...... Chris has a busy week ahead....
DeleteI ve got my birthday to deal with
Unbelievable!
ReplyDeleteThe gift shop controversy is a heated one. No matter what is decided (it will stay), it will still stir up some feelings.
ReplyDeleteA cheese board? Really? Who decided that one?
You'd think they would think of some more appropriate items to sell if they have to raise money. I think donations would be more appropriate. 9/11 was my 50th birthday, so I will never forget what happened or what I was doing at the time.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the lady's words. I was there in NYC that day - something clearly I'll never forget and which still deeply affects me today.
ReplyDeleteCheese board?!?!?!? I'm lost for words utterly and totally lost for words. My decision to go back when I did and pay my respects quietly in my way is vindicated by this cheese board idea. I don't need to visit that memorial to remember and it'll only hurt me to do so
I would like to hear your story of the day.
DeleteNo need to purchase a souvenir of a visit, surely you would remember vividly. At the most they should sell a collar pin or some such thing to raise money for charity.
ReplyDeleteIt is right there's a fitting memorial to the innocent people that died...but a shame it is [partially funded by such crass souvenirs...
ReplyDeleteHow very untasteful
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